Top Gripping Properties to Look for in a Glove

Concrete workers undertake many of the most grueling industrial environments. When encountering rough working conditions, workers require and demand the highest quality protection available. This quality level makes a significant difference in a wearer’s work experience, personal safety, and all-day comfort. Even beyond these factors, high quality PPE ultimately drives employee performance, productivity, and also helps reduce injuries. For all the features found in premium quality gloves, gripping power is one of the most important to consider.

Since 2010, our development team has worked tirelessly in conjunction with our Innovations Technology Center Laboratory (ITC Lab) testing materials and creating the best personal protective equipment (PPE) on the market. With our substantial experience in testing and developing premium gloves, we know what makes a high quality glove. We know how different materials ultimately plays a significant role in one’s gripping ability.

Here is a breakdown of the top gripping properties one should consider:

Synthetic Leathers

Lab tests show synthetic leather has just as high abrasion scores as natural leather, but with half the material. This ultimately means greater gripping power! Synthetic leathers also provide excellent gripping qualities in wet, dry, or oily environments. A great example of a glove manufactured with synthetic materials is our 3730DP. This glove was originally created as an environmentally friendly option, however users have realized this glove also offers impressive durability, abrasion and puncture resistance.

Natural Leathers

Just as gloves created with synthetic materials have positive grip qualities; using natural materials can also have a powerful impact on one’s grip. Natural materials, such as goatskin leather, are proven to be very strong and have great tensile strength. MCR Safety’s MC503 - UltraTech Multi-Task is manufactured using the highest quality goatskin leather available, offering users maximum abrasive wear and tactile sensitivity. In addition to the supreme tactile grip of this glove, your hands stay soft and comfortable by combining Dyneema ® Diamond Tech’s cool liner and goatskin’s natural lanolin.

Polyurethane (PU)

Polyurethane is an incredibly resilient, flexible, and durable polymer. Users will find incredible sense of touch when utilizing a PU dipped glove, along with high abrasion resistance. The N9696 Ninja Lite is a featherweight PU option many utilize for all-day comfort and precise gripping.

Latex

Available in a wide variety of blends and styles, the elasticity and flexible nature of latex provides remarkable gripping power. Crinkle dipped and textured latex styles provide additional grip resistance for handling sharp edges and abrasive materials such as concrete blocks.

MCR Safety’s Ninja Flex N9680 and 9680 are examples of high performance gloves made with excellent dexterity, flexibility, and grip for wet or dry conditions.

Nitrile

A great alternative to latex, those made with nitrile have a huge advantage for abrasion resistance and comfortability. A nitrile coating resists water, oils, and other chemicals, making it great for gripping in a multitude of environments. One example of a revolutionary nitrile coating is found in breathable nitrile foam (BNF). MCR Safety offers a wide variety of gloves made with BNF, such as the N96790 - Ninja® BNF and the Featherweight N96970 option.

You can clearly see our Featherweight N96970 option easily grips better on all four surfaces when compared to a leading competitor’s option.

Abrasion Resistant Gripping

The concrete manufacturing industry is no stranger to abrasive materials. Laborers everyday work around abrasive wet cement and abrasive concrete blocks. Therefore, an abrasive-resistant glove is extremely important for comfort and safety. Our Ninja® BNF has exceptional abrasion resistance and unparalleled grip performance. Internal testing shows BNF offers 30% better abrasion resistance than standard nitrile. In addition, BNF technology provides greater comfort and longer durability due to its excellent breathability by dissipating body heat. Your body naturally cools itself down, why should your gloves not do the same thing?

Here is a look at some abrasion testing we conducted on our Ninja BNF coating:

Competitor at 2,000 cycles

BNF at 2,000 cycles

BNF at 5,700 Cycles

BNF overall visual aid

The more cycles, the more abrasion resistance has occurred. At 5,700 cycles, BNF holds up better than a competitor’s option at 2,000 cycles. You can see how seriously we take protecting people’s hands by thoroughly testing of our product. This is important, because the longer a glove’s coating stays intact, the longer the wearer will be able to grip without replacing the glove. 

Water Resistance Gripping

Mother Nature can turn from sunny conditions to rainy conditions in no time. For this reason, the level of water resistance should be a no-brainer when it comes to selecting the right glove in the concrete industry. Aside from the importance of keeping hands dry in damp environments, the hazards associated with cement burns should be in the forefront. Gloves like the N9699 - Ninja® HPT use Hydropellent Technology (HPT), providing advanced protection against moisture. HPT coating creates encapsulated air molecules, which repel liquids for an unprecedented firm wet or dry grip.

You can visually see how HPT is an excellent choice for wet conditions.

Patterns, Dots, and Textures

Many premium gloves on the market outperform their alternatives because of the intricate design and placement of pattern, dots, and texture. The 6016O - NitriShield® with Grippaz™ Technology uses a unique fish-scale pattern providing a powerful grip. Grippaz™ Technology uses its unique traction grip embossed on the outside, as well as the inside for added gripping power. The most common patterns used for enhanced grip protection and longer wear are dots made of nitrile, PVC, or another synthetic material.

Shape

A glove’s shape can have an incredible impact on grip power, flexibility, and dexterity. The MC502 - UltraTech™ Multi-Task, was developed with this particular grip property in mind. The G-shaped palm padding provides concrete workers with a glove that is not only comfortable but also boasts a powerful grip.

High Performance Materials

It’s important to pay close attention to the grip materials being used in relation to the glove’s intended use. Rough grips using a sandy and abrasive finish are ideal for working in wet environments. Oftentimes, grip can be customized using sandy grit or other rough materials to meet harsher worker conditions. Some premium gloves, like the HV300 - Forceflex®, use a synthetic leather palm pad for added durability, coupled with a rough grip palm for additional traction. The HV100 - Forceflex®, uses a Rough Kevlar® Palm with an additional EVA padding to provide grip enhancement.

Padding

Providing additional stress protection and padding to the palm of the hand, like with the PD2903, helps reinforce a glove’s grip potential. D3O® padding technology has unique padding materials used for shock absorption and impact protection.

MaxGrid™ Fabric

Another example of D3O® technology is the FF2930 - MCR Safety® Forceflex®. Gloves using this technology offer superior grip in wet, dry, or oily conditions. The FF2930 is clearly the go-to choice for working in multiple work settings. Here is a general breakdown of palm materials used for gripping in various working conditions:  

MaxGrid™ Fabric found on the FF2930 - MCR Safety® Forceflex® packs a punch in dry, wet, and oily conditions.

Palm materials scoring 4 or higher are excellent choices. MaxGrid™ Fabric found on the FF2930 packs a punch in dry, wet, and oily conditions.

Reinforcements

The highest performing gloves for concrete manufacturing are almost always equipped with additional reinforcements. The most common reinforcement is an additional coating, typically covering the palm and fingertips. This is seen in in the N9676DT, featuring thumb crotch reinforcement. Another popular option is the MC503 - UltraTech Multi-Task, reinforced with coated DuPont™ Kevlar® for additional protection in the thumb crotch area. Due to the reinforcement and abrasiveness of the MC503, it is highly requested by the concrete industry. In addition, it has a Dyneema® Diamond Tech liner, which is 40% lighter and less dense overall compared to other cut resistant gloves, creating a glove which is thinner and easier to manipulate for maximum grip.

Combining Accurate Test Data with Cutting Edge Technology for Premium Quality Safety Gear

At MCR Safety, we design all our gloves with these properties in mind. Our ITC Laboratory takes pride in being the only ISO/IEC 17025:2005 accredited US lab testing for ANSI Abrasion, Cut, Tear, and Puncture. This accreditation indicates that we have demonstrated technical competency and ability to produce precise and accurate test data. By collecting real test data and utilizing the latest technology, we strive to provide the safest gear for the concrete industry. You can see from all the data we’ve highlighted above; a glove’s performance is of the utmost importance to us.

Any user interested in testing the quality of their existing PPE is eligible for no cost equipment testing through our ITC. We also offer onsite consultation through our 360 Protection Program, emphasizing risk reduction, cost savings, and productivity.

We Protect People

Contact us today for more information on free lab testing, browse our website to learn more about our products, or give us a call at 800-955-6887.